Seeing police car giving chase to an old Volvo XC90 usually means that the distracted dad driving the Swedish SUV probably failed to notice he has left his fifth child back at the ice cream shop, and the officers are in a hurry to deliver the little one back to his family.
That's just the kind of reputation this SUV has built for itself, but after this video surfaced, it's going to suffer an 180-degrees turn. The Volvo XC90 is suddenly going to become the car of choice for every gangsta in this world, and with good reason.
Most car chases aren't exactly planned events. The suspect doesn't know he's going to be chased in that vehicle, so it's just your regular, faster or slower depending on its specifications. Some of them might even be tuned, but that usually implies more power and some aerodynamic touches. But that's it.
This guy from Lithuania does not believe in taking your chances. He would much rather always be ready for anything, and that's precisely why his XC90 could be displayed right there next to James Bond's Aston Martins. Or any of the karts featured in Wacky Races game, for that matter.
It all starts like any other car chase out there, with the suspect in front and the police car in pursuit. As the cops begin to gain ground, however, the driver decides it was time to deploy his first secret weapon. At first, it all looks like the usual cloud of death that many diesel cars release when the throttle is opened wide. Soon, though, it becomes obvious that something is fishy. Yup, the guy is using smoke as a screen to keep the police cars away.
It's not the best tactic since it may put some distance between his car and the pursuers, but a big cloud of smoke is also very easy to spot, so they'd have no problem chasing him from a distance. But the police don't back off and continue to hold on tight. That seems like a bad and unsafe decision, but soon enough proves to be the right call.
Moments later, the Volvo man releases his second and final defense mechanism: a bunch of spikes that were supposed to puncture the tires of the pursuing cars (at 0:52). Great idea, bad execution - the police cruiser is just a few feet behind, so the spikes don't get to touch the ground in front of it, bouncing off the hood and windshield instead.
Running out of gadgets to use, the suspect is finally cornered and pushed into a protective barrier, which is also where the clip ends. So, full marks for effort and ingenuity, but better luck next time. Which will most likely be a long time from now, since he'll be charged with endangering the lives of police officers, an accusation he'll have a hard time denying with this video running around on the Internet.
"Boy meets car, boy loves car, boy gets journalism degree and starts job writing and editing at a car magazine" - 5/5. (Vlad Mitrache if he was a movie) Full profile
Would you like AUTOEVOLUTION to send you notifications?
Google News